Frank Stranahan standing on the porch of his earlier trading post, near present day Stranahan House.
Stranahan House stands on its original location at the New River in downtown Fort Lauderdale. It has been the site most closely associated with the founding of the City and its economic and social development. Frank Stranahan originally selected the site because it was where he operated his barge ferry across the river as part of the new road from Lantana to what is now North Miami.
Today, Stranahan House is the eastern anchor of River Walk, a linear waterfront park connecting Fort Lauderdale's historic district with the soon to be created cultural district anchored by the Performing Arts Center and the Museum of Discovery and Science.
Built as a trading post for settlers and the Seminole Indians in 1901, it quickly evolved into the post office, community center and town hall as Frank became Fort Lauderdale's first postmaster, a banker and businessman. He married another pioneer, Ivy Julia Cromartie, the area's first school teacher, and it was not long before dances and community festivals were held on the upper floor of the house. In 1906, it became the Stranahan's personal residence and remained so until Ivy Stranahan's death in 1971.
Following Frank's suicide during the depression, Ivy leased the first floor of the house to outsiders for use as a restaurant, while she continued to live upstairs. In 1973, the house was named to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1979, the restaurant closed and the Fort Lauderdale Historical Society took possession. After a thorough restoration, Stranahan House, Inc. was incorporated in 1981 to preserve and manage the property.
The structure, built of Dade County pine, is an excellent example of Florida vernacular architecture in a tropical wilderness setting. Expanded and renovated numerous times, it presently represents its 1913-1915 configuration. At that time the Stranahan's home had electric wiring, indoor plumbing and running water, interior stairways, bay windows and wide porches. All woodwork, flooring and paneling have been refinished and the exterior repainted in the original white with green trim. A new roof, a prototype for other historical properties, was completed in 1996 and meets current hurricane specifications. Although many of the original furnishings were sold or given away over the years, the house is furnished with fine examples of period Victorian furniture and decorative pieces.
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